


in the night

by faikitty



Category: Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, M/M, Post-Canon, Scary Movies
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-11
Updated: 2019-02-11
Packaged: 2019-10-26 04:05:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,782
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17738711
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/faikitty/pseuds/faikitty
Summary: It's rare for them to wind up in worlds with the technology to allow them to watch horror movies.





	in the night

“’The Haunting of Poplar Street,’” Kurogane repeats. “What the hell is that?”

“A scary movie,” Fai says with a smile, waving the case containing the film in front of Kurogane’s face. Kurogane snatches it out of his hand and eyes it suspiciously. The cover is dark, featuring only a washed out, faceless figure, all but obscured by the darkness around it. The only clear features are its bright eyes and the lettering, the movie’s title and a small review at the bottom boasting that the movie is so terrifying it made people faint in theaters. Kurogane isn’t sure what a theater is, but he’s watched a few films in previous worlds and doubts a movie could make someone faint no matter where they are.

“It’s rare for us to be in a world with this technology,” Fai continues as Kurogane skims the back of the disc; the description contains no more details than the cover. It makes only vague references to a house where strange things happen, as if that weren’t evident by the title alone. “I thought we could have a family movie night.”

“Why?” Kurogane asks rather than acknowledge Fai’s comment that they’re a family. He passes the case off to Syaoran, who takes it and studies it curiously. “What’s this movie even _about_?”

Fai shrugs. “The man I bought it from said it was a good movie a date,” he says. Kurogane chooses not to acknowledge _that_ comment either.

“I think it sounds fun,” Syaoran says, looking up with a smile.

“Family movie night is a go!” Mokona announces from its perch on Syaoran’s shoulder.

Kurogane looks between the three of them before sighing. “ _Fine_.”

The first fifteen minutes of the movie pass uneventfully.

Fai made sure to make the room as dark as possible, blackout curtains drawn against the city lights outside and every switch in the apartment flicked to off, before curling up on the old, uncomfortable couch with the holes in the cushions. He sandwiches himself in between Kurogane and Syaoran, his legs tucked up beneath him and a blanket thrown over both him and Syaoran. Kurogane leans against the arm of the couch, chin resting on his palm. The movie is _boring_. Kurogane can tell that it’s cliché, and he’s never even _seen_ a scary movie before. Fai lounges against him, and his weight pressed to Kurogane’s side is the most interesting thing going on.

Then the promised “strange things” begin to happen.

In the movie, the family’s young daughter wakes up to find her door standing wide open; it was closed when she went to bed. Fai’s breathing catches. A strange sound starts to play, whispering and singing at once, and Fai presses himself back into the couch, his eyes growing wide, as Syaoran leans forward in nervous anticipation. Mokona, sitting in Syaoran’s lap, immediately dives beneath the blankets. Kurogane glances sideways at them. Nothing has even _happened_ yet, but the idiots are already scared.

When the ghost appears an inch away from the daughter’s face, even Kurogane jumps.

Fai yelps and grabs Kurogane’s arm with a subconscious, panicked laugh. Syaoran jerks the blanket into his lap alone and shoves it over his mouth, his eyes wide and unblinking. Fai shifts closer to Kurogane at the lack of warmth, pressing himself so close to Kurogane that he’s practically in his lap. Kurogane just stares at the television as the scene unfolds, his arm rigid beneath Fai’s grasp.

Fai doesn’t release Kurogane’s hand even after the ghost disappears, and Kurogane can’t find it in himself to tell him to. Instead, he turns his arm over so he can twine his fingers through Fai’s. Fai visibly relaxes at the touch, and Kurogane can’t help but wonder if _this_ was the true reason Fai wanted to watch a horror movie. The mage always seems to be searching for a reason to draw them closer together, even though all he really has to do is ask. Still, Kurogane doesn’t comment on it, not even when Fai’s grip grows painfully tight at the next jumpscare.

When the screen goes dark and night falls once more, Fai groans. He sinks back into the couch as far as he possibly can, muttering a quiet “no” over and over and watching in terror as the movie’s father gets out of bed to investigate the odd noises that woke him. At the end of the hall, something stands in the shadows—something that looks strikingly similar to the figure on the cover of the film. Slowly, the father approaches it, calling out his daughter’s name in a loud, confused voice.

“That’s not your daughter,” Fai whispers, dropping Kurogane’s hand so he can curl in on himself and press his fingers to his face. He doesn’t look away; he peers through his fingers with wide eyes as the father draws ever closer to the creature who, Kurogane is _also_ certain, is _not_ his daughter.

Kurogane and Fai are right; it’s not his daughter.

Fai gasps and hides his face entirely as the creature drops to all fours and skitters toward the screen. Kurogane does not hide his face, because even if he _wanted_ to, he can’t look away, his eyes wide, while Syaoran quickly hides his head beneath the blanket. The ghost disappears seconds before it hits the camera and the father, and Kurogane slowly relaxes as Syaoran peeks out from beneath the blanket.

“I hate this,” Fai mumbles into his palms, but he looks up again as the father runs to check on his daughter, still asleep in her bed. “I hate this so much.” He sighs with relief as the screen brightens; daytime is where it is safe. All of the tension leaves his body at once with a shuddering sigh, and he drags his hands down his face as he slumps against Kurogane.

Kurogane’s arm goes around Fai’s shoulders automatically to draw him in close. “This was _your_ idea,” he points out. “What’re you going and getting all scared for?”

Fai laughs softly and eases into Kurogane’s embrace, resting his head on his chest to gaze at the television. “It’s a scary movie,” he says. “It’s _supposed_ to scare you. That’s what’s fun about it.”

“This is _fun_ for you?” Kurogane asks in disbelief. “You just said you _hated_ it. You’re shaking.”

“Observant as always, Kuro-tan,” Fai teases, but he doesn’t deny it. “Haven’t you ever sat around telling ghost stories? Those are fun because they’re scary too.”

“They were never scary to _me_.” It’s a lie; Tomoyo was—and still is— _very_ good at telling ghost stories. Back when they first met as children, Tomoyo was able to keep Kurogane up for days on end by terrifying him with tales of ghosts and demons. “Ghosts aren’t real. Human beings are far scarier.”

“And you’re the scariest one of them all, right?” Fai suggests. He tilts his head to glance up at Kurogane, his smile affectionate. “You’ll have to protect me then—from ghosts and humans alike.”

Something in Kurogane’s chest stirs at that. “I—”

“Shh,” Syaoran interrupts, waving his hand at Kurogane and Fai. Kurogane looks over to see Syaoran staring at the television with rapt attention, a spark in his eye that Kurogane recognizes as him scanning for danger.

Fai gives a soft laugh and drapes his arm over Kurogane’s abdomen, holding him tight. “Sorry,” he whispers. Syaoran only nods distractedly, still focused on the movie.

Fai stays pressed up against Kurogane throughout the duration of the film, his arm periodically tightening around Kurogane’s waist. Syaoran stays leaned forward and hypervigilant, and Kurogane thinks more than once that Syaoran is going to _attack_ to the film. Fai, meanwhile, gives only small screams that are more breath than sound and nestles in against Kurogane, his hold tight and terrified.

Following one especially tense scene, Kurogane thinks Fai is _genuinely_ scared for a moment. Then he realizes Fai is shaking so hard from laughter, not fear. “What are you giggling for?” he asks quietly, prodding Fai in the side and prompting another laugh.

“I can feel your heartbeat speed up when you get scared,” Fai whispers. “It’s cute.”

“Who’s _scared_?” Kurogane protests. He jabs at Fai’s side again. Fai snorts, and he has just opened his mouth to respond when the movie goes to hell.

The ghost materializes, its form full and terrifying, eye sockets large and mouth hollow and larger, and Fai goes stiff against Kurogane in a spike of honest fear. The parents in the movie can’t fight it, neither the ghost nor their terror, and Fai can’t either. He gives a tiny shriek and hides his face against Kurogane’s chest. Kurogane’s hand seizes tight on Fai’s shoulder in an instinctive urge to protect him. The parents in the film are yelling, and Fai is shaking, and—

Syaoran kicks the television.

The glass of the screen shatters beneath Syaoran’s heel. Fai jerks his head up at the crash, eyes wide and unseeing through the darkness, the light from the movie gone. Kurogane reaches over quickly and flicks on the lamp on the table next to them. Syaoran stands in the center of the room, flinching away from the light that floods the room. The television lies in a smoldering pile at his feet. He looks up sharply; his face turns scarlet so quickly it must be dizzying.

“I—I panicked,” Syaoran stammers.

“That’s… okay,” Kurogane says slowly; he doesn’t know what else _to_ say. Next to him, Fai is shaking again, his head buried against Kurogane’s chest, and Kurogane catches little bursts of laughter. “No more scary movies,” Kurogane hisses at him, and Fai’s body shudders with another laugh as he nods against Kurogane.

They never do learn what exactly happened on Poplar Street.

* * *

 

Later that night, as they lie peaceably next to each other in bed, Kurogane wraps one arm around Fai to pull him in especially close, Fai’s upper back pressed to Kurogane’s chest and Kurogane’s mouth against the back of his head. “Scared?” Fai asks. Kurogane can hear the smile in his voice.

“No,” Kurogane mutters against him. “Just wanted you closer.”

Fai’s laugh is soft. “Because you’re scared.”

“I am _not_.”

“Very well,” Fai agrees amiably. “You’re not scared. Maybe I am. Shall we go with that?”

“…yeah.”

Fai laughs again, even softer. “Sounds good.” He eases into Kurogane’s touch, and Kurogane closes his eyes to breathe him in. Kurogane really _isn’t_ scared; he doesn’t get scared of things like ghosts, those memories too intangible to be fought, but his heart beats steadier with Fai against him. It always does.

Kurogane holds Fai to him as he falls asleep; ghosts are nowhere to be found.

**Author's Note:**

> what do you do when you're bored and literally haven't spoken to anyone, online or in real life, in three days because you're self-isolating? write about the Tsubasa fam watching a dumb horror movie together like you wish you were doing, I guess.
> 
> they're idiots and I love them.


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